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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. kid — to tease
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. craft — boats
  5. foot — a measure
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. current — happening now
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. race — the arms race
  10. rule — government
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. craft — a skill
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. bat — the animal
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. kid — child
  20. current — of water
  21. race — a contest
  22. race — humankind
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. current — electric

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com